Becker (Paolo) XL (G) Rusticated Pot Estate Briar Pipe, Italian Estates

Description

The Becker family is one of Italy’s most renowned pipe-making lineages. Beginning with the painter, sculptor, and WW2 British intelligence officer Fritz Becker, the Becker name became synonymous with Italian high-quality pipes after Fritz was discovered by Giorgio Musico, a pipe-maker himself, and owner of a popular pipe shop in Rome. Both Fritz and Giorgio had sons, Paolo Becker and Massimo Musico who learned pipe-making from their fathers and would go on to collaborate in making the famous Becker & Musico pipes, before parting to return to making Becker pipes and Musico pipes once more. Paolo passed away in 2014, but his son, Federico continues to make Becker pipes, to continued acclaim.

Rustication, particularly pebble-dash rustication, is a great Italian tradition, and it is perhaps Italy more than anywhere else in the world where high-grade pipes often wear rusticated finishes. Castello, Caminetto, Ascorti, Radice, Ardor, and Ser Jacopo, to give just a few examples, are all high-grade makes that include rusticated finishes in their output. So, it can be quite difficult for an Italian pipe-maker to create such a finish and for it to stand out among the others. Yet this is exactly what the Becker family managed to do. Perhaps it is partly the stain they used, and perhaps it is partly the frequent pairing of rusticated bowls and smooth rims that accounts for just how enjoyable these pipes were to look at, and for why they remain so coveted. Whatever the reason, the Beckers’ achievement here was certainly impressive. Unfortunately, this finish was retired before the early 2000s, so getting one’s hands on one can be pretty difficult. Based on Paolo Becker’s own (now archived) timeline of Becker nomenclature over the years, this one is likely to have been made in the mid-1990s, and as such will have been Paolo’s work.

The condition is great. Some very minor wear to the rim, and slight finish fading.

 

Details:

Length: 6.5″ / 165.1mm

Bowl Width: 1.11 / 28.19mm

Bowl Depth: 2.19″ / 55.62mm

Weight: 2.3oz / 68g